以下文章均选自真题及其他各类托福练习，在了解托福阅读文章的题材，形式的同时，应该重点掌握和注意下划线的词汇：
P1
The first professional clown born in the United States was John Durang (1768-1822), who came from a decidedly noncircus family. Durang was the first in a long line of great clowns to dynamically combine genuine dramatic and comedic talent with a highly developed proficiency in a wide range of circus techniques. He left home at the age of 15 to tour as a dancer with a traveling performer. His lack of formal training did not stop him from becoming an accomplished puppeteer, clown, Harlequin, dancer, ropewalker, equestrian, Shakespearean actor, scene designer, and pyrotechnist. John Bill Ricketts was impressed enough to offer him a job in 1793, but Durang declined because it required superior horsemanship, a skill which he had not yet acquired. In 1795 Ricketts repeated his offer, and this time Durang accepted. He immediately began practicing trick riding and was soon able to add equestrian clowning to his repertoire. By 1797 Durang had become a key member of Rickett’s company, and that summer he and Ricketts led the troupe on a tour into Canada. During continued his remarkable career for the next 20 years, performing in theaters and circuses and even managing his own dramatic touring troupe for nine consecutive summers. Before he died John Durang revealed yet another talent by writing his memoirs, the only extensive first-person account of circus life in the early United States.
clown : n. 小丑,粗鲁愚蠢的人
decidedly : adv. 决定,断然；明了,无凝
circus : n. 马戏团,马戏,竞技场
dynamically : ad. 动态的
genuine : a. 真正的,真实的,诚恳的
dramatic : a. 戏剧性的,生动的
comedic : a. 喜剧的
proficiency : n. 精通,熟练,精练
technique : n. 技术
[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] 下一页
